Former Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Dakuku Peterside, says with the demise of Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark, Nigeria has lost a “voice, patriot, statesman, defender and shining light.”

Dr Peterside, who received the news with shock, stated that the demise of the Federal Commissioner of Information has created a vacuum that will be too huge to fill.

“The late Clark is a true Nigerian hero who spoke truth to power and made a lot of sacrifices defending the rights and privileges of the minorities,” he stressed.

While stressing that the deceased represented courage and patriotism, the turnaround expert said he was a champion of the Niger Delta struggle and never wavered in ensuring that the people got a fair deal from government at all levels.

According to him, “My last encounter with him was to discuss his book. I made a speech on behalf of younger Ijaw leaders in Lagos, and he called to appreciate me for the kind words I said about him. He challenged my generation to carry on with the struggle.

“He was a role model, a mentor, one who led the way for others to follow. At his blessed age, he could simply have retired home, but he chose to fight for the cause of common Nigerians regardless of their backgrounds.

“Pa Clark was never afraid to stand for what he believed in; once he is convinced of the proprietary of the cause, he puts his all, even against his safety.

“A sizeable chunk of projects, appointments, policies and programmes we have in the Niger Delta were through his struggles alongside other patriotic sons and daughters of the region,” he stressed.

Dr Peterside sympathised with the government and people of Delta State, the Ijaw ethnic nationality worldwide, elders, and leaders in the Niger Delta over the passage of a “great and irrepressible son.”